"We were always proudly independent." Martyn told Edge, echoing comments made by another former Bizarre employee. "However, when Activision took over, we really felt that they would leave our culture alone, and for a while it was fine, but slowly the feeling did start to change.

"We weren't an independent studio making 'our' games anymore - we were making games to fill slots. Although we did all believe in them, they were more the products of committees and analysts. The culture we'd worked on for so long gradually eroded just enough so that it wasn't 'ours' anymore."

However, more interesting was the claim that Activision offered to return Bizarre Creations to its founders.

"Without going into details, yes, there was [an opportunity]," Martyn explained. "But I personally thought there was far greater potential for the security and well-being of the company if a third party could come in."

"In any case," Sarah added, "Bizarre had grown even more since [Activision] took over, and we just didn't have the skills, capability or finances to look after over 200 people. Martyn and I were always small-company people, which is why we stepped aside when we realized it needed big-company skills to manage."

Martyn and Sarah Chudley are currently at Sumo Digital, while other former Bizarre Creations developers formed new studios Lucid and Hogrocket.